Low-Cost Wireless Force Sensor Design with Applications in Friction Stir Welding

A rotating multi-axial wireless force sensor was developed for use in Friction Stir Welding (FSW). A special emphasis was placed on developing a system that was both low-cost and robust in terms of handling the loads and thermal environment of FSW. The system was designed and built in-house at Vanderbilt University and was shown to be lower in cost than most commercially available multi-axial load cells that could be utilized in FSW. Torque (M-z) measurement was demonstrated in the first stage of development and the capabilities are currently being expanded to measure the traversing (F-x) and side (F-y) forces in FSW.